


Amelia

by linatrinch



Series: Stormpilot Tumblr Prompts [19]
Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens (2015)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Parents, M/M, Minor Character Deaths, Parent-Child Relationship, Twi'leks, lots of F bombs
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-08-20
Updated: 2016-08-31
Packaged: 2018-08-09 21:56:03
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 9,114
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7818733
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/linatrinch/pseuds/linatrinch
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"Finn and Poe are raising a child."</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [moon01234](https://archiveofourown.org/users/moon01234/gifts).



> The full request was “Finn and Poe are raising a child. It could be Poe's biological and he is trying to raise him/her on base. Or it's later after the war and they adopted or did some strange SW universe thing that made him/her their own. Or it could be during the war and they are raising a child together!! I don't care what, as long as I get to see Parent!Finn and Parent!Poe, both with different approaches on how to raise a child.” Sorry this is so so late!

The whole thing started out on rocky footing. So much so that the story was a bit difficult to explain years later when a distant family member would ask on the origin of their small family.

It was always Poe's cocky smirk that said, “Well, see, I was tied up and gagged while locked in a room with Finn-” That usually stopped the rest of the questions.

But he wasn't lying either, even if there was more blood and fear in reality than would have other wise been suggested by the pilot's dancing eyebrows.

What really happened was- Actually, Finn never really got his memory back on what happened, but what he _remembered_ happening was someone kicking him in his thigh.

It was an awkward sort of kick, but it did the job and woke him up. Finn jolted with a sputter, remembering enough to know that he should be in fight or flee mode. But he found himself inside of a small, metal enclosed room with a solid door with no handles on his side. He also realized that something was in his mouth and his hands were trapped behind his back. Further assessments deduced that the kicks had come from Poe Dameron lying by his side at an angle, his dear friend and the guy that was supposed to be flying them to a core world for negotiation talks (though Finn only remembered boarding the transport), who was also gagged and bound much like himself. It would be an exciting image if his head didn't hurt so damn much.

When they locked eyes, Poe's immediate reaction was to sag into the floor, letting out a breath around the cloth in his mouth. Evidently he had been worried.

Finn tried to ask what the hell had happened, his voice so muffled that it came out as one long grunt more than anything else. At least now he felt more annoyance than guilt so that was a plus.

Poe glanced to the door, voiced something that sounded like just another grunt, and twisted his legs around, rocking himself until he was sitting up. The pilot turned his back to Finn and began scooting towards him as best he could, and the other finally got the idea.

Finn tried his best to sit up, happy that the world didn't plunge into darkness or spin on an imaginary axis, but a little worried about the pain shooting through his temple. Still, he managed to get up and backed right into Poe. For a moment, their hands awkwardly fought over the chord bindings but eventually found a way to reconcile and work together. Finn managed to set Poe free first, but the pilot didn't move away until Finn's hands were free, too.

Soon as that happened, Poe took his gag off faster than lightning. “Are you okay?” he quickly asked, turning around to inspect that spot on Finn's forehead that was burning like hell.

Finn's gag came off just as quick. “I'm fine. Hurts,” he answered but steered the conversation to something much more immediate. “Poe, what the hell happened?”

But Poe just sagged again, not looking away from the spot, and having none of the change in topic. “Fuck, Finn. I thought they killed you. Don't do that.”

“I'm all right,” he said again, putting a hand against the spot on his head only for it to hurt that much worse. His hand, unsurprisingly, came away red. “I'm sorry, Poe. But seriously, what happened? Are you all right?”

Poe was checking his eyes for a concussion, though, in the horrible lights of their presumed cell. “Not surprised you don't remember, buddy. Bounty hunters caught up to us. Assholes tricked me and managed to board. I thought you took a fucking blaster to the head trying to protect me. You fucking idiot. I hate you so kriffing much.” It didn't really sound hateful. It actually sounded like it was muttered as an afterthought as Poe inspected Finn for various injuries.

He took the pilot's hand gently. “I hate you, too, Poe. I'm sorry for doing that to y-”

Poe pressed his lips against his, hurriedly, hungrily, then it was over. “Just don't do it again. I'm serious.”

Finn brought him in for a hug, enveloping Poe in his arms exactly the way he liked while trying to subtly check for injuries, too, what with the hand gliding over his pilot's ribs. “Please tell me you're okay, too.”

“I'm good. I'm good.” The response sounded like it was spoken pretty absently, but Finn let it slide due to the situation and Poe pulling away. “We need to get out of here,” the pilot muttered, turning towards what was most likely the entrance. “Plans?”

“Just one.”

* * *

Poe slammed against the wall as hard as he could, putting up a fuss that was going to make his throat ache for weeks. He felt like a kid about to get scolded by his dad for rough housing too much, but that was okay. If it didn't do the job, then the ship was going to be too big to work with anyway.

Fortunately, he heard footsteps before that thought settled and he just hit the wall harder, screaming and yelling in one long stream of noise.

Then something banged back. _“Shut the fuck up!_ This is why we gag you ingra-”

Poe didn't let him finish. _“HE'S DEAD!”_ He flung himself into the door again, the metal starting to sting. _“HE'S DEAD! HE'S DEAD! HE'S-”_

“If you don't shut up,” the grunt yelled back, finally opening the door and pointing a blaster in the general vicinity of Poe's chest, “you're going to be in the same-”

Finn, who had stayed quietly to the side of the door, grabbed their jailer's arm and flipped him to the durasteel floor, placing his foot at his throat and twisting his arm all in one resounding _snap_. It wasn't pretty but it worked.

Poe grabbed the blaster and started looting the body for other weapons. Just a hunting knife in the boot. Useless. Finn, meanwhile, was unwrapping what looked to be a wire from under the guy's shirt. “Was he communicating back the whole time?”

“No,” he answered, finding the battery pack and radio quickly enough, “but they're going to call for him in about ten minutes if they're at all competent.”

“Take the blaster. You got better aim.” Poe shoved the gun towards him and glanced out towards the hallway. It looked like they were on a freighter, but one much bigger than the _Falcon_. Much better for cargo shipments, meaning the hangar was somewhere in the stern. If only he knew which way that was. “We gotta find the back of the freighter. If they're really in this for money, they would have left our ship in good enough condition to sell, so good enough condition to fly.”

“Looks too cheap for alarm systems,” Finn assessed, poking his head out of the cell, too. “I'll take point. Don't forget the door.”

“Yes, dear,” Poe mumbled and waited for the other to pass by, blaster at aim on his shoulder, before reactivating the door code and closing it back behind them. Considering they only sent one person to make him shut up, they couldn't be that well put together. Possibly drunk after finding such a reward as the Resistance's best pilot, the famous First Order traitor, _and_ a luxury star cruiser built specifically for core world politics. Either way, Poe did the math in his head. Finn took one out before his injury. Poe took two in a fit of rage. Then there was the guy back in their cell. “I'm guessing at least eight left, but I don't know how many hung back when they jumped us the first time.”

“Let's just assume it's the _Finalizer_ all over again,” Finn muttered back.

“Yeah, we're actually _less_ lucky this time, bud-” Poe stopped, an alarm going off in the distance making him panic.

Finn had paused, too, glancing in the direction of the sound. A hallway ahead of them lead down a different corridor, but it was either port or starboard, definitely not the way to stern or the cockpit. Still, as the alarm quieted and started up again, it was becoming more and more puzzling. The ex-Stormtrooper turned towards him, whispering, “Have you heard a siren like that before?”

He was obviously worried it was something specific, some sort of code, but Poe thought back anyway. As unsure as he was, the sound of it did seem familiar. Then the noise lowered again, several thick metal walls separating the two of them from the source, but it kept rising and falling irregularly with no pattern. It reminded him of- of refugee camps. The answer felt like a bullet through his chest.  
  
“Oh, _kriff_ , fuck. Fuck, fuck. Finn, we-” Poe glanced behind him then edged around his boyfriend to take a look down the clear hallway. “We gotta get to it. C'mon.” He started moving again, not checking to see if Finn was following or not. The small string of curses behind him told him enough.

He didn't really want to think about the implications of this. Getting off the freighter would just end up being infinitely more difficult, but he couldn't do anything else after realizing what the sound was. A part of Poe wished he disregarded it and kept going, no guilt or doubt hanging over him while making the best decision to save them both. Now they were both in so much more danger, but he couldn't leave like that. He couldn't do it and allow himself to never think back on it again, to believe that the decision wouldn't haunt him. He couldn't do it.

Poe made it to the cell in record time, using his knife to pry open the door control panel then starting on the puzzle of matching which wire went where.

“What the hell is that sound?” Finn asked from behind him, keeping watch down the halls.

To be fair, it did sound pretty terrible from this position. “I shouldn't be surprised that you don't know, babe.” Poe could only hope his voice didn't sound too shaken, but it didn't matter seeing as how he finally found and cut the right wire to make the door slide open. Disappointing that they wouldn't be able to close it again like the other one but details.

Poe bounded inside, trusting Finn to watch the door while he looked for the noise's source in the dark room. The figure of a woman sitting against the wall wasn't terribly hard to pinpoint. A twi'lek with dull yellow skin and luckily dressed as a commoner and not a slave. He ran to the woman, kneeling against her, hand fumbling for her shoulders. “Hey. We're breaking out of here. We need to find the hangar-” He realized quickly that her eyes were open and staring at the floor, shoulders too stiff to move much. For some stupid reason, Poe checked for a pulse anyway and cursed again. Now that he really looked around, there was a pretty obvious patch of blood that he was kneeling in. Of course. Of fucking course.

“Poe,” Finn hissed from the entrance urgently but not dramatically. Translation: We should probably go now.

The pilot looked down at the screaming twi'lek baby in the woman's lap, wrapped hastily in what looked like a shawl or scarf. “Dammit,” he muttered quietly in a sing-song tone, picking up the baby gently, “Fuck. Fuck. Fucking shit. Fuck. Shit. Dammit. Please be quiet.” He put the baby to his chest, being wary of the knife, and made his way back towards the door.

The loud screeching had tapered off to a softer wail, but it didn't help Finn's shock any when he turned around and found the alarm's source. He looked up to Poe, dumbstruck, like he was suddenly looking at an idiot. “What?”

“The mother's dead,” Poe whispered, though it had little effect over the baby's crying.

“Ohhhh.” Finn looked up and down the hall, worry crinkling his face like he was about to start a crying match with the kid. “Shit, Poe. Why? Why do you-? Why?”

“We can't leave it here.” They could. A part of him said they should. A much larger part felt like hell for even considering it.

Finn huffed, looking a lot like how Poe felt. He chewed on his lip and seemed to decide on something, quickly removing the leather jacket on his shoulders. “Wrap the kid up. They're probably cold,” he instructed, tossing the jacket to Poe. “And _stay here_. I'll be right back. Do nothing stupid, Dameron.”

“I won't-” But Finn left before any argument for Poe's honor could be made.

He grumbled, pushing his back against the wall and taking off the blood drenched scarf, praying the poor thing hadn't been born in this awful cell. Unfortunately, the _it_ quickly became a _she_ and the whole thing just felt worse and worse. He took the brief second to run his hands over her, checking for injuries or bruising in the hall light filtering into the room and found nothing marring the fiery orange skin of the baby girl. Quickly, Poe wrapped her snug in his old jacket, covering the head and keeping her close to his chest, hoping his pounding heartbeat could help soothe her. “Shhh, sweetheart,” he mumbled, back to the sing-song voice from before. “It's all right. I got you. I got you, angel. Hush, it's okay.” His voice and the body heat seemed to soothe her even more but not enough to keep her totally quiet. Probably hungry. The current status would just have to do.

That's around the point Finn appeared again. With a much larger blaster. “I found the way to the back of the ship,” he whispered, handing Poe the smaller gun they had taken before. “I'll lead. Stay three paces behind me and guard our six.”

He loved it when Finn gave orders. But- “Three paces?”

“I'm protecting you two,” the other explained, already beginning to move down the hall at a faster pace than their first one. Poe hurried after him to keep up. “Just stay back and keep them safe. Priority number one. I'll handle the fighting.”

“Her.”

“What?”

“She's a girl.”

“Of course you checked.”

“I didn't name her, too, if that's what you're thinking.”

“Thank the Maker,” Finn mumbled, picking that line up from Threepio, before stopping and nodding at a sign on the wall in a language neither of them knew. “That symbol looks like it goes to fuel lines, right?”

More often than not, ships sometimes had universal symbols to dictate where the most important parts of a ship was for the crew. Things like engineering and electrical and other stuff that could go wrong really fast. Fuel stations was one of those and that symbol was awfully familiar. “Fuel cells should be near the hanger in a freighter this big. Good eye, buddy.”

“Three minutes,” Finn mumbled to himself just loud enough for Poe to accidentally hear before their pace continued. He blinked, figuring that was probably the time they had left before the crew would be looking for that first grunt. Considering the new blaster, there was a second one somewhere, too. Not good.

“If you're dizzy, I can-”

“She likes you,” Finn responded, not breaking stride. “I'm not messing that up. Just keep doing what you're doing.”

Poe hadn't noticed, but that must be true seeing as how the girl had quieted down to gurgles and small squeals. Not really happy squeals but not screeching bloody murder either. “Well you'll have to hold her when we get to-”

Finn stopped and waved an arm, signaling for Poe to flatten himself to the wall. He quickly did so, bouncing the baby with one arm to try keeping her quiet while Finn peaked around the corner before dodging back to him. “It's the hangar,” he said, and Poe thought he'd pass out with relief for the third time that day. “There's a field on the far side, no hangar doors, and our ship is there.”

“Guards?”

“Didn't see any. No cameras from this vantage point. Two powered down mechs.”

“Okay,” Poe breathed. “Cover us. I'll start flight procedures, but that's bound to alert someone. Get the gunner as soon as there's an opening. I'll try to initiate hyperspace before they can get to us.”

Finn glanced to the gurgling bundle. “Can you fly with her?”

“Well, I-” Poe was about to explain how he had to fly a mission with a dislocated shoulder over Dantooine once but was rudely interrupted by a loud and very real siren going off throughout the ship. Needless to say, the baby reacted with an answering screech. “Later!” he yelled over the noise and ran in front of Finn to the ship before the astromechs could wake and stop them.

Finn fired a shot behind them followed by the sound of a heavy door falling closed. Beautiful, brilliant Finn. Poe promised himself to kiss the man senseless when they were out of this. For now he ran up the loading ramp in two large steps. “Get in! Let's go!”

He practically flew to the cockpit, only briefly glancing around to make sure no one was trying to stow away, then sat his blaster on the floor. “All right, baby girl,” he said over her loud wails in too light of a tone, sitting in the pilot's seat and getting the flight sequence ready, “You're about to get a crash course in starfighter piloting. I was probably about your age when I-”

“Poe, they're here!”

“Shit, okay. Here we go.” It felt like he was physically hauling the ship up on his arms for all the effort it took to move the beast before all the procedures could finish. Still, he was already heading out of the hangar by the time the first blast hit along their side, shaking the ship just enough to jostle the baby that much more. He punched the ship as fast as it would go, letting go of his one handed steering to start the hyperdrive sequence. “You good back there!?”

“I can't hold them!” Finn answered from the turret at the bottom of the ship. “Go! Go!”

The stars melted around them and they went, flying through hyperspace and headed for the Ileenium system as fast as they could. It took a moment to realize the sound still screeching through the ship's hull wasn't an alarm going off but the baby again.

Then Finn ran in. “Everything holding up? The ship's good? Baby's good?”

“Ship's good.” Personally, Poe was surprised the bounty hunters didn't disable the hyperdrive as soon as they got the ship in their possession, but he wasn't about to express that. “Baby... not physically hurt as far as I can tell. Scared, I think. Didn't like the noise.”

“Come here,” Finn ordered, and Poe was about to instantly rise and obey as he usually did when those words left his boyfriend's mouth, but the baby was taken from his lap instead. “It's all right, girl. We're good now.” Finn, unlike everyone else Poe ever knew, didn't put on a sugar coated voice when speaking to a baby. He spoke in his regular, serious voice. As he sat down in the copilot's seat, Poe found he liked that touch a little- way too much. “We're going to a base where our friends are. You're safe now.”

Finn held her against his shoulder, letting her scream into his black t-shirt while he rubbed up and down her back. “What do we do with her?”

“Let Kalonia make sure she's okay,” Poe answered, blinking and thinking. “Try to find something she can eat, I guess.” A military base was no place for a child, though. What would be done with her? The refugees that passed through could hardly feed their own children or themselves. An orphanage on her homeworld, Ryloth, was always an option, but Poe knew first hand what happened to war orphans, much less female twi'lek orphans. The look in Finn's eyes said that he knew the same. “We'll figure it out, buddy.”

The other sighed, but looked down at the baby as the screaming slowly began to subside even if his rubbing of her back didn't. “Did you name her yet?”

“No.”

“Good.”

Amelia was starting to grow on him, though.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm highly considering making a series/multichap fic out of this. So much so that I have SO many ideas that ran away from me. I really love the parent stormpilot fics, and I've seen Poe's biological kid or a misplaced Stormtrooper kid or mpreg kid, but the idea of Poe ripping down a door in enemy territory to get to a crying baby kind of stole my heart.
> 
> Anyway, thanks!


	2. Chapter 2

Finn was grateful that they had the foresight to radio back in to D'Qar before just showing up as they were. After all, they were supposed to be meeting with a few big time officials for ships and weapons at that very moment according to the on board chronometer. There was no way they'd make it in time or even want to after the crap they'd been through. The mission was nixed as soon as they had been boarded.

But being heavy an extra eight pounds of twi'lek was a totally different problem. “We rescued another prisoner that the bounty hunters had on board while we were making our way out. She needs special medical attention. Poe's with her now.”

“ _Understood,”_ the blue holo image of the General answered, a blur of movement behind her that was either commande or medbay staff. Either way, they had successfully worked up everyone on base. _“What's her current status?”_

And here was the tricky part. “No injuries as far as Poe and I could tell, but-” Why was he the one stuck doing this anyway? It was Poe that found her, Poe that scooped her up and saved her, Poe's current responsibility. It probably had something to do with the fact that she was quieter in his arms than Finn's.

“ _But?”_

Oh shit, he took too long. “But, uh, she's-... Well, ma'am, she's a kid.”

“ _A kid?”_

“A child, yes.”

“ _How old?”_

Finn watched the stars dart by the cockpit, intentionally not looking her in the eyes. “We believe... at least a few hours, maybe a day.”

“ _... A baby.”_

“Some may call her that.”

There was a silence on the other end. Eventually Finn grew curious enough to look, only finding the General pinching the bridge of her nose, looking to stave off a migraine. _“I should have sent a different pilot. You and Dameron always end up in the most insane situations.”_

He wanted to argue that it wasn't _their_ fault that they have the strangest luck imaginable when put together. Not to mention that he was really looking forward to that overnight vacation with his boyfriend that was now out the window. But since he couldn't argue her point one way or another with a clear conscious- “Yes, ma'am.”

“ _I'll have Kalonia's staff set up what equipment they do have for an infant. It's not unheard of for a soldier or refugee to give unexpected birth on base, so we should be stocked well enough. What about the mother or a name for the child?”_

“No, ma'am.”

Organa nodded stiffly. _“Very well. We'll meet you on the tarmac upon arrival. If there's no other surprises, D'Qar out.”_

He shut off the comms and let out a deep sigh. “We're good!”

“Oh, thank the Force,” a muffled voice answered him from the hull.

* * *

Since Poe had to land their ship, it was Finn who disembarked with a squirming bundle of jacket in his arms. Shockingly enough, Snap's face was the first one he saw running up to their transport.

“Hey!” he greeted though not with much of a smile before slowing to a stop. “Heard you two were headed back early. Gotta talk to the boss about a mission that went bad. Where is he?”

Finn's heart nearly stopped. “He's checking the ship over for damage after our dog fight. What happened? Anyone lost?”

“No, no.” Snap waved off his concern, allowing Finn to breathe again. “No fatalities but some injured, including Pava. Just gotta talk to him about upcoming rotations. Almost everyone grounded right now are officers- Your jacket's moving.”

Oh. Finn hoisted her further up on his hip. “Ah, yeah, um, it's kind of complicat-”

“Finn!” He turned at the shriek of his name, just barely catching the blur of Dr. Kalonia running at him. “You're here early!”

“Poe was worried, and we kind of pushed the hyper drive a-” The words died on his lips as the baby was taken from him, a sudden weight lifted off his body like an arm had been chopped off. The little girl let out a cry, wiggling and thrashing in Kalonia's grip as she was placed back first on a small stretcher.

“She seems uninjured,” the doctor said to her small crew. “I want ultrasound equipment and blood tests ready. Did anyone get in touch with the pediatric center on Coruscant? And where is that formula!?” Before Finn knew it, they were already leaving.

Snap glanced to him. Finn looked back, belatedly realizing that his hands were still up in the air like he was still holding her.

“Whew, okay!” A grinning voice chuckled as Poe finally joined them. “Nothing permanent but, man, am I shocked that tin can held together as much as it diiiiiiahhhhhhHHHHH-” The pilot looked Finn up and down, ran his eyes over the tarmac, glared at Snap, eyes practically bulging, _“Where's the baby!?”_

Finn and Snap pointed at the retreating medical team, the metal doors already swinging closed behind them. Poe took off at a sprint.

By the time Finn and Snap managed to catch up, Poe was already in the medbay, banging his head against a window that was covered with a curtain from the other side. “They won't let me in,” he explained, using every syllable as an excuse to hit his head again.

Snap still seemed speechless, so Finn gave it a whirl. “They're just making sure she's okay, Poe. She's not alone or anything. They're helping-”

A medic grabbed him by the arm and practically threw him in a bed. “Finn, I'm so glad you came to us first for once. Just look at your head! What happened?”

“Um.” Poe was tossed in next to him, still with a little scowl, so it wasn't so bad.

But then the General walked in and, yeah, it could be better. “I'd like to know the same. Some things just can't wait for an official report.”

Snap made himself comfortable on the vacant bed across from them. “Oh, I'm ready to hear this one.”

Considering Finn was trying not to wince at the antiseptic they were trying to dab on his head wound, Poe groaned and seemed to attempt answering. “When I last radioed in, they were tracking us. But they outmaneuvered me, shot out the comms- There were more ships than initially assessed because they all jumped out of hyperspace at once on our position. This was planned. Someone at the meeting or on base sold us out.”

He hadn't told Finn that before hand, but Poe just continued anyway. “They took out all power capabilities that I had and boarded the ship. It was too many of them. They knocked Finn unconscious and captured us both. When he woke up, we took down a guard, took his weapons, and made our way off the ship.”

She blinked at them. Poe frowned back. “Annnd,” he reluctantly began, “on the way out, I heard a baby crying in another cell. We ran to it, hacked into the door mechanism without tripping alarms- I think they were after the mother. She was dead in the cell when we got there, and the little girl was bloody, wrapped in some soaked piece of cloth. We bundled her in Finn's jacket, left the presumed mother's body, and _then_ made our way off the ship. They were probably going to sell our transport, so it was lucky we found the thing in their hangar in one piece.”

“And now you're here with a baby,” she finished.

“And now we're here with a baby, yes.”

Snap's chuckle went ignored as Leia continued. “Any information on the mother?”

At that both of them grimaced, not having thought to check in all the commotion. “No, General,” Poe answered with a shake of his head. “We wasted too much time getting to her. Even if we had checked on her person, the bounty hunters likely took anything of value.”

She nodded anyway. “Understandable. You both did an incredibly admirable thing for this girl. We'll attempt looking for family members, but it won't be easy if bounty hunters were after the mother. If she was wanted badly enough – and this group didn't seem the type to collect chump change – then whoever was after her may accept the child as compensation. We can't allow that.”

Finn hadn't even _considered_ that outcome. The devastation probably showed all over his face, but the General just sighed, a bit of her firm demeanor escaping her. “We'll find suitable housing for her. In the meantime, I believe Wexley has important information to pass on.”

Snap didn't even wait for the General to dismiss herself before just saying, “We got ambushed, Poe.”

Dameron's face fell, but Leia was the one to pat him on the shoulder. “No heavy losses. Just more monkey wrenches,” she sighed, finally walking out of the medbay.

Poe turned to his pilot. “What happened?”

“An information leak, I think, especially after what you just described,” Snap answered, scratching at his beard. “They knew where we'd be before we even did. Took some damages, but all birds are still ready to be airborne. The problem is injured pilots. Nothing serious, but too many people are grounded right now. Jess, Iolo, Bastian, Nien, Zari, Theo- Over half of Red Squadron and about of quarter of Blue's.”

Finn watched Poe grimace. “Karé's good?”

Snap nodded. “I ordered her to head Blue until you got back. L'ulo's still out in the Western Reaches.”

“Yeah,” he sighed, “good, keep her there. I'm sure these injuries won't ground me. Anything since then?”

“Been quiet, boss,” Snap shook his head, but stopped short. “Well, until you two showed back up, that is.” Finn smiled, also thankful that the medic was finally leaving him alone what with his small wound being bandaged and all. But then Snap leaned forward. “All right, spill. Which one of you named her?”

“She doesn't have a name yet,” Poe answered a little too quickly. “She, uh- You know. She needs to find a family first.”

Finn frowned at him. Poe wouldn't meet his eye.

* * *

Predictably, it was difficult to find any trace of twi'leks related to the woman that had matched Poe's description without alerting anyone unsavory to the situation. It had been five days since she had arrived on base for the first time, and it would be a massive understatement to say that she was by far the most popular person on the planet.

Weird how everyone wanted to come and coo at the baby. Even half of the injured pilots still on bed rest managed to maneuver their way over to her special room that was now being called “the nursery.” Snap had made it his personal duty to sniff out food and formulas fit for a baby so young. Every twi'lek on base had some sort of opinion on how to hold her, feed her, sing to her- _“No, not like that! You have to do it in Twi'leki. Here, let me. Humans never do it right.”_ Jess had practically held two separate classes on how to change her for half the base since _everyone_ wanted to play a part somehow. BB-8 stared at her for a solid day before attempting to play with her and beeping soft lullabies as she slept.

But once she had been allowed what Kalonia begrudgingly called _visitors_ , Finn or Poe or both was always with her no matter what time of day it was. Meal times and nights were blissfully quiet, away from people trying to get a look at the new baby. Finn didn't bother asking Poe why he thought they should be there and, honestly, he didn't bother asking himself the same question. He had become pretty adept at feeding her a bottle and swaddling her for sleep, meanwhile Poe was excellent at singing her to said sleep in a language from Yavin IV and distracting her when she decided it was time to play. The med staff helped, too... They helped a lot, actually. Babies were pretty hard work.

It was kind of worth it in moments like this, when it was time for evening meal and shift rotation, when both Finn and Poe could be with her at the same time thanks to their schedules, when she slept with a little sigh in place of a snore while the pilot stared at her with one hand over her little belly, all snuggled up in the onesie. It was _really_ nice.

Finn watched Poe, noting that look in his eyes and asked for likely the hundredth time, “Did you name her yet?”

“No.”

“Good.”

The back and forth never changed, and Poe never asked why Finn kept at it anyway, but there was something a little too much there. Coupled with the fact that the Resistance couldn't find a trace of her family, well-

General Organa knocked on their open door. “Sorry,” she whispered, “I'd rather not wake her.”

“She sleeps like a rock once she's out,” Poe answered back with a little smile at his normal volume. “Can't promise you can hold her without waking her, though.”

“No, no,” the General waved her hand, “I actually wanted to speak to you two.” They sat a little straighter before she continued. “As expected, we hadn't found a family. We did contact Ryloth, explaining that we had heard of a prisoner matching the mother's description. They explained that she was once a slave turned political terrorist, hacking First Order databases for the highest bidder. They wouldn't give us a name or file, but they assured us that if she had been apprehended, then Ryloth wanted nothing to do with it, trying to stay as far out of the war as possible. They also mentioned that she had no known family members. Apparently she was sold at a young age.”

Finn nearly asked after a father but realized quickly that it would be a stupid question. So Poe asked instead. “A father?”

Leia shook her head, and they both went somber. She sighed and continued. “I'm getting a small transport together tomorrow morning. Karé's going on a supply run in the Outer Rim, coincidentally near Ryloth. She'll stop there first and drop the girl off at an orphanage.”

“What?” Poe gasped like he'd been slapped. “General, you can't be serious. You know what happens to young girls out-”

“I know more than most,” she said firmly, shutting him down. “Things have changed since the Empire. And we're not just dumping her, Poe. We've done our research. She's going to one of the larger cities to one of their better institutions. Beyond that, she should be with her people.”

Finn frowned but couldn't argue her once again. He trusted Organa to not just leave the kid in bad hands, but it still worried him about what hands she would eventually transfer to. When he glanced to Poe, the argument didn't seem to be done. The pilot was practically gnawing on his bottom lip, worry creasing his brow. “Why can't-” He paused then started again. “Everyone on base already knows her. Why can't she stay here?”

He could not believe that Poe actually just openly came out and asked that. From the look on Leia's face, she couldn't either. “Poe, this is an active military base on the front lines of a war spanning across the galaxy. This is hardly a safe place for a child, a newborn at that.”

“With all due respect, General,” and if Finn could get away with reaching over and chocking his boyfriend right now then he would in a heart beat, “we just recently destroyed an enemy weapon that could wipe out entire systems in less than a few minutes. I think it can be argued that _nowhere_ is safe.”

“That may be, Commander,” she replied, and it wasn't nearly as icy as he expected, “but she cannot stay on base while we're at war. There are too many responsibilities and too many dangers here. You know this. She's leaving tomorrow morning with Karé. That's all.” With her foot down, Leia turned away and left them.

Finn slowly looked from the door to Poe, who was quietly staring a hole into the tiled floor. Finally, the pilot predictably stood up. “Oh no, this isn't over-”

“Poe.” Finn rose and stopped him from pacing after their General, getting between him and the door. “Organa's right. She'll be safer out there.”

“ _Safer?_ ” Poe looked angrier and more disappointed than he ever had towards Finn, and the other man really wished he could change that, but some things just had to be. “They could be building another Starkiller right now or another Death Star. Then what? If we lose, then what's _safe_? Besides, do you have any idea what they do to twi'lek girls?”

“In the shady areas, yeah. You know they would never-”

“It doesn't matter what _they_ do. If they send her out in the galaxy all alone, who's going to make sure she doesn't end up in shady fucking areas?”

“Poe.” Finn stopped him, pausing the conversation long enough to take a deep breath in and out. He opened his eyes again. “Poe. Ryloth is her best chance.”

“Best _chance?_ ” Now the pilot looked like he could hit him. “We're leaving her to _chance?_ ”

“Everything's left to chance, Dameron. All I know is that we saved her from those bounty hunters. We saved her from an early death. _You_ saved her from an early death. All we can do now is make sure she has her best shot in life, and that's _not us_.” Poe sucked in a breath, standing up a little straighter. With a heavy heart, Finn continued, “People can't raise children on bases like this. She has to go where her people are. That's the _best chance_. That's the _best_ we can do.”

Poe's eyes searched his face, shifting from foot to foot for a moment before going still. Eventually he quietly asked, blinking a little too quickly, “Why can't we raise her here?”

The question shouldn't have been as shocking as it was. Sure, he expected a few conversations about the possibility of a future, the possibility of settling down, the possibility of a family, but this still shouldn't have been as shocking as it was. So Finn stared back at him and found himself shaking his head. “We're not it, Poe... I-” Finn swallowed. “I'm not it.”

Poe's lips were held in a thin line, staring back at Finn like he didn't know him anymore, like he'd just ripped his heart out or something. Like he was a traitor. Finn glanced to the baby girl, wishing he could have spent more time with her tonight, before turning and leaving.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I meant for more to happen in this chapter but it got too long. Alas! Anyway, thanks for reading. Hope you guys are still liking it. :)


	3. Chapter 3

Finn was right.

Poe stared at the little girl, absolutely zero motivation running through him to get up and go to his own bunk right now. He huffed, arms propped up on the side of med unit's bed, watching the twi'lek infant doze like nothing in the galaxy was wrong at all. Her little chest rose and fell with each breath, smacking her lips every now and then from the thought of some dream.

What had he been thinking? That they could raise a baby? He and Finn and a base full of hot headed soldiers with war pumping through their veins? Everyone on that base could be burned down in a minute. No tomorrows were ever guaranteed, especially with Finn's and his own high ranks. A child needed a future, and why the hell had he been thinking about a future anyway? Maybe he just liked the _idea_ of her. The _idea_ that he could have a family – a real normal family – someday. The _idea_ that Finn, a man who grew up a soldier, would want the same with him. Maybe that idea was so far out of sight that he latched on to the first possible opportunity. And maybe, because of his stupid selfish daydreams, he had ruined a good thing that he already had.

But he couldn't help but feel responsible for her. He was the one that found her, after all. It was his responsibility to make sure she would be okay. Otherwise it was pointless to take her along.

So Ryloth had to be the best place for her. Wherever that best place would end up being, Finn had still been right. This wasn't it. He wasn't it.

She wiggled and kicked against the small blanket, opening her mouth wide in a squeaky yawn and scrunching up her face.

“Oh, hey now,” Poe spoke quietly, lightly tapping her on the tummy. “What are you doing up so early? It's not even daylight yet.”

The girl opened her little blue eyes to peer up at him before kicking again with happy grunt. At least he thought it was a happy grunt.

He put a finger in her little hand, letting her ball a fist around him while he grumbled, “Please, don't start taking after me. I'm a horrible influence.”

She kicked again, harder, and squealed up at him.

With a sigh, Poe gave up. “You better not be hungry already, you little nerd. Kalonia's gonna have a heart attack when she sees how much you really put away.” He stood, leaning over to pick her up and rest her against his shoulder. Diaper still seemed to be dry, thank goodness. Which only made him wonder what had woken her. “Shhh, I've got you, my girl. I got you.”

He paced around the room as the squealing and cooing started to silence once again. But it was a bit awkward for him when he was overtaken by a desperate need to fill that silence. It seemed like this was an important moment. Karé would be there in an hour or so to take his girl to the other side of the galaxy. Surely he should say something. “I would tell you goodbye,” he sighed and cleared his throat, “but I don't think you'd understand me.”

There was no reply. Poe took note of the weight of her, how warm she was against his shoulder, how the palm of his hand rested on her back and his thumb rubbed against the base of a short lekku. He listened to the little sounds she made, tried to remember how she smelled, felt her fingernails against his chest from the little hand fisted in his shirt. “I think I'm in a little deep here,” he muttered to the quiet, still not getting any answer, “but I'm an adult, and adults sometimes have to do what's best even if it hurts. And it is for the best. I know you'll be better off, my girl... I hope you'll be better off...”

There were so many ways Ryloth could go completely balls up that he didn't even want to think about it. And maybe life on base was hectic and insane at times, but it could be filled with love, too.

Poe hoisted her higher, pushing those thoughts down. “I'm going to go ahead and say goodbye anyway, okay? If for nothing else than to say I did it.” He looked over to her just enough to see that she was sound asleep again. There was a pause, a beat, a sigh, and Poe pressed a kiss to the side of her head. “I shouldn't have named you.”

A stampede of rushed footsteps could barely be heard from the hall, headed straight for him and the rest of the medbay. For one ridiculous moment, he thought that was Karé's group coming for the girl in his arms, assuming they'd have to pry her out of his cold dead hands after his talk with the General... They weren't entirely off the mark, but he quickly realized how crazy that thought was before replacing it with a slightly saner one. Something else was wrong. Really really wrong.

Before he could run through the list of who could be hurt so badly – _please don't be L'ulo_ – Snap burst into the room. “Poe-”

Another breath couldn't be said before a low yet very loud and present alarm started to sound throughout the base. His first stupid thought was _it's gonna wake the baby!_ before turning attention back to his pilot. “What's wrong?”

“L'ulo's intel came in,” Wexley quickly rattled off, looking this way and that at people passing by, “D'Qar's still compromised, and the Order's planning an attack. We're bugging out.”

“To where?”

“Ylesia.”

Poe had done the recon to Ylesia himself just a few months ago. That was a good enough choice for him but uh- The protocol for bugging out was that all starfighters provided escort for the shuttles. They were heavily lacking pilots, and it was up to Poe to coordinate who went where while some poor cadet loaded all of his belongings into a couple of boxes for the journey. Except... he had a baby in his arms, and there was a sense of panic at the edge of his vision. _This is it. This is exactly it. This is why we can't do this here. This is fucking why._

But Snap, bless him, just kept talking. “Karé's on her way. I'm going to get our birds in the air, escort command and patients since we don't have the numbers right now.”

Whoa, wait- “That's my- That's what I do.”

“You'll catch up, boss,” Snap said, starting to retreat. “Worry about that baby girl first.” And then he was gone.

At some point during the short conversation, the baby had started crying in tandem with the alarms. He still hardly thought about it, shifting her in his arms for a better position before moving out the door himself. Snap was giving him a proper chance to say goodbye, and he couldn't be a complete asshole and waste it.

No sooner than he had cleared the corner, Finn almost barreled straight into him. “Poe! You-!” He skidded to a stop, only barely finding his balance. “I had to come find you. I'm sorry. I'm sorry for last night. I know you're- And she's-”

Finn was supposed to be helping load essential equipment on the first transports out of orbit but instead he had come here, and Poe could kiss him right now. “No, I'm sorry. I was being a stupid jackass. You're right. You're always right. It's what's best for her. We have to do what's best for her.”

“I know, but-”

Like a blonde flash, Karé was suddenly taking up all of his vision, separating the couple enough to force them side by side. “Boss, I gotta go. They're sending me ahead of the convoy.”

“Yeah, yeah. I-” Without much preamble, the girl was already being taken out of his arms, her cries only getting louder at the sudden trade off. “Careful! Don't just-”

“I got her. I got her,” his pilot reassured him. “Raised three of my cousins back home. I think I can carry a baby. Huh, sweetheart?” Kun took a second to shoulder the girl, smiling back at her and just getting screams in return. She turned back to Poe instead, unmoved by the answer. “Okay, I gotta leave like three minutes ago. She have a name?”

“Amelia.” It was out of his mouth before he could say otherwise, before he could even think about the question. This was all happening far too fast right now. He needed time. Just a minute to think and get his head on straight and realize what the hell he had been thinking these last few days. But this was better. This was for the best. No matter how much it _hurt_ , this-

Finn shouldered the baby out of Karé's arms and ran further into the medbay. The woman stumbled back, confused. “Hey, what? Not cool-”

Poe, pretty confused himself, ran after him. “ _Finn!_ Finn, stop!” It took a few feet, but he finally managed to tug on his boyfriend's arm and stop him right inside of a patient's room. “Finn! What the fuck are you doing?”

The air left him when their eyes met, finally spying the look of sadness and desperation and worry on the other's face. “You told me you didn't name her!”

“That doesn't matter-!”

“No, it _does!_ It matters!” Finn glanced down to her, still yelling until her orange face turned red, and looked back up to Poe. “I meant what I said last night. We have to give her the best possible chance we can find. She deserves that. But- But this is happening too fast. And we don't know anything about Ryloth's status in the war right now. We don't know anything about this orphanage or people looking to adopt or even if someone is looking for her to sell right now. We don't know anything. We can't do this. It's too soon.”

But- Poe looked to Karé, who had followed them as far as the doorway, and back to Finn, trying to figure out what to say and how to say it. He was desperate right now. He didn't even know what the best course was, only that she couldn't stay. “No. No, Finn, we- we don't have time. She has to go. She has to.”

“We can buy time."

“How? The entire base is shipping out. We-” His words trailed off as Finn looked to the patient in the room.

Poe turned, and there sat a very wide eyed Jessika Pava in bed with a set of broken ribs and a healing scar from a surgery to fix internal bleeding. She blinked. “Oh, please, don't stop on my account.”

When he turned back, Finn was looking at him, determined now. “They won't find out until it's too late,” his lover told him, “Karé has deniability, Jess is already grounded for her wounds, but you and I _will_ go down for this.”

He looked to the squirming, screaming baby girl. “Jess, we need a favor,” he said, taking her out of Finn's arms and carrying her over to Pava.

Karé caught on quick. “Oh, no. No no no. I'm set to deliver a baby. What do I tell them?”

“You lost us in the commotion,” Finn answered, turning around to her. “They won't believe you didn't find us if you took too long lifting off. Go. Go!”

With a confused look around the room, she groaned and ran out.

Jess, however, still looked around like she didn't even know these people. “Wait. Wait. What's happening? What are you doing?”

Poe put Amelia in her arms. “We need you to smuggle our baby to Ylesia.”

There was a short laugh followed by a loud, “What!?”

“You just had surgery,” Finn said, pointing to her torso. “You don't even have to tell anyone anything. Just carry the baby around and they'll assume-”

“Assume I gave birth to a twi'lek?”

“Tell them she's _half_ twi'lek!” Poe butted in.

“But-” Pava looked down at the baby, at the door, and back to them. “The nurses. The pilots. People are going to know better, Poe. Even if I could pass it by other guys in the squadron by saying I keep to myself, the med staff know damn well I wasn't pregnant.”

“Act like you didn't know about her either until you had her,” Finn suggested. “Happens all the time.”

“Not on a military base that does full body check ups once a week!”

Poe grabbed her by the shoulders, turning her to face him. “Jess, I never ask you guys to do something I wouldn't do, and you know that I'm always the first one stepping into the shit before everyone else. But this isn't an order. It's a _favor_. I'm _asking_ you, Jess, please. Can you do this?”

She looked up to Finn and down to the girl in her arms. Amelia was starting to quiet down but was still very clearly upset about the current situation when she had been napping so nicely. With a gulp and a deep breath, Jess looked back to him. “I can do it, Poe.”

He smiled wide, Finn's shoulder visibly deflating at his side, as Dameron leaned forward to leave another kiss on Amelia's forehead. But no sooner had his boyfriend hauled him to his feet and began to shuffle them both towards the door, Kalonia rushed inside.

Everyone stopped as the doctor's eyes flicked around, taking in the scene she just stumbled in on. And for a brief moment Poe realized it was all shot to hell. With good reason, too. Yet he _still_ wanted to drop to his knees and beg her to keep quiet about this. Instead he waited like an animal caught in a light, praying that nothing would change if he just didn't move.

Then Kalonia rushed around them and towards Jess' bed, breaking the moment. “Pava, we need to take your IV out. Patients are going first. I need a wheelchair here!” the last part being yelled out the door.

Jess blinked. “I don't- I can walk-”

“Not with that surgical wound,” the doctor answered, then glanced up to the men still standing in the room. “Commander, I think you have somewhere to be right now?”

He was the one to grab Finn's hand that time and, without a look back to his girl or a word to any of them, began to run out of the medbay and straight for the hangar. As soon as they were clear enough, though, he hauled Finn to his side, backed him against a support beam, and kissed him like they were sharing the only breath of air left in the galaxy. A hand raked through his hair, clearly enjoying itself for a second, before tugging him away. But not without a moan crawling from his throat at the feeling of his hair being pulled like that.

“Poe.” Finn was panting against him. “We gotta go. We gotta-”

“Yeah, yeah.” Poe took a deep breath. “I love you.”

“I love you, too-”

The pilot stole one more deep kiss before tearing himself away and continuing his run to the hangar alone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally got another chapter out. One of these days I'll keep on with the prompts, but I just love this too much right now. Thanks, folks!

**Author's Note:**

> Feel free to send more prompts to my [tumblr](http://linatrinch.tumblr.com) even though I'm way behind. lol


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